"I have staked everything on my claim to the throne of Fortezza. I shall be its Prince or nothing."
The first three quarters of City of Swords was a struggle to get through and while the last quarter was a little better, it couldn't save this series.
The protagonist, Laura, is a good heroine with flat characterisation. She self-harms, so I would not advise reading City of Swords if self-harm is triggering. The rest of the characters are just as flat, but I'm still invested in the original cast from the first two books in the series. The most interesting part is the Luciano-Nicholas-Vicky aspect because the characters' emotions and actions are believable.
I do not like the romance aspect which contains poorly executed instalove. Laura and Ludo have maybe two interactions and while the possibility of a connection between them is valid, the progression of their relationship is not believable. I also can't see how their relationship is going to work after reading City of Swords.
The plot for each book in this series is repetitive, but what keeps it fresh is the exploration of a different city in Talia. Fortezza is an atmospheric city, but it's not a unique or interesting one and we're shown little of it.
The events that occur are also rushed. Laura time travels to different places and reports on what's happening and there's more telling than showing which makes everything lack depth.
I'm disappointed with this finale because the overarching plot of this series is not resolved. The Stravaganza Sequence has always been about the conflict with the di Chimici family and trying to ensure that the independent cities stay that way, but City of Swords doesn't provide a resolution. Instead, we find the Stravaganti and the di Chimici family fighting on the same side for reasons that I could not understand. I also couldn't take Fabrizio di Chimici as an antagonist seriously.
The only satisfying resolution is the relationship between Arianna and Luciano and it's nice to see their relationship come full circle. I've had a theory that this series follows the relationship between Arianna and Luciano through the PoV of random side characters and City of Swords supports this view.
I will always have fond memories and nostalgic feelings towards the Stravaganza Sequence series, but the finale is disappointing.
"Do you think all acts of heroism involve fighting and recklessness? Sometimes the task is a dreary and mundane one but it still takes a kind of heroism to bear it."